Experiments in Clay: From Terracotta to Porcelain with Ebony Russell

This course is designed for clay enthusiasts eager to experiment with a variety of clay bodies and hand-building techniques for sculptural ceramics.

Your teacher, Ebony Russell, and internationally renowned and prize-winning ceramicists, will show you how to use clay as a sculptural medium and unlock new creative possibilities.

Each day, you will work with a different type of clay (including earthenware, stoneware, mid-fire porcelain, and paper clay), learning about its unique characteristics, workability, and firing requirements.

You will also explore creative ways to enhance your pieces: by using clay additives such as stains and organic materials, as well as decorative techniques (including carving, incising, slip decoration, and additive forms).

The course builds on foundational hand-building techniques like pinch pots, coil building, and slab work, taking them into new, experimental territory. It’s perfect for beginners seeking a hands-on introduction to clay, as well as for experienced makers looking to expand their skills and explore clay’s endless creative potential.

During this week, you will have a unique opportunity to fully immerse yourself in ceramics, tapping into creative potential often lost in the noise of everyday life.

By the end of the course, you will have the opportunity to choose which piece(s) you would like fired, glazed, and shipped to you. As pieces need approximately a week to dry out, this will be done for you once the retreat has concluded.

Outcome

By the end of the week, you will have learned:

• Characteristics, workability, and firing requirements of a variety of clay bodies
• How to combine pinching, piping, coiling, and slab-building techniques with experimental practice
• Texturing and surface decoration methods, including carving, stamping, and slip application

Your Teacher

Ebony Russell is an Australian artist who uses an unorthodox approach to construct ceramic sculptures. Her unique technique was developed out of an interest in gendered aesthetics, labour, and traditional craft practices, where Russell methodically pipes porcelain in a series of intricate layers to build gravity-defying forms. Challenging the traditional making processes of decorative vessels, in her works, the decoration becomes the structure, and the boundaries between the two are erased. Exploring established perceptions of cultural and artistic practices that were once exclusively coded as feminine and thus insignificant, Russell’s work celebrates the decorative, promiscuous aesthetics and politics of purity; the superficial, excess, and delight with pleasure.

Ebony Russell completed a Bachelor of Applied Arts (Honours) at Monash University in 2003 and, in 2019, graduated from The National Art School, Sydney with a Master of Fine Arts. Russell has won a number of international awards, and her work has been exhibited and collected worldwide.

Arrival and Departure

We ask that you plan your arrival for Sunday. We have an included pick-up from either Palermo Centre (in front of Hotel Politeama) at 11:30 or Palermo Airport at 12:30. On Sunday afternoon (circa 16:30, subject to change), you will be welcomed to Salemi by one of our team members, who will take you on an orientation walk of the historical centre. This will be followed by a welcome apericena (light dinner) with a Salemi Spritz at one of our favourite local restaurants.

We will bid you farewell at the end of your time in Salemi with an included transfer to either Palermo Airport or Palermo Centre (Piazza Politeama), departing Salemi at 07:00 on Saturday morning.

**For pick-ups and drop-offs outside of these times and locations, please contact us for a transfer quote.